Question 95·Medium·Transitions
The transportation sector accounts for nearly one-quarter of global carbon dioxide emissions. ______ many cities are investing heavily in public transit and bike infrastructure to reduce these emissions.
Which choice completes the text with the most logical transition?
For transition questions, first ignore the choices and read the surrounding sentences to decide the exact relationship: are you seeing cause-and-effect, example, contrast, or continuation? Once you’ve labeled the relationship in your own words (e.g., "This is a result of the previous sentence"), eliminate all options whose usual function doesn’t match (for instance, cross out contrast words if there’s no real contrast). Finally, pick the remaining transition that fits that relationship and reread the sentence with it to confirm it sounds logical and natural.
Hints
Check the relationship between the two sentences
Ignore the answer choices and read the sentences together. Is the second sentence adding an example, showing a contrast, or describing something that happens because of the first sentence?
Focus on the cause and the response
The first sentence gives a fact about emissions. The second sentence describes cities investing in transit and bike infrastructure. Ask yourself: Are these investments part of the problem, or are they a reaction to it?
Match option meanings to the relationship
Think about what each type of transition does: one introduces an example, some show contrast, and one shows a result. Decide which type fits the relationship you identified, then pick the transition that matches that type.
Step-by-step Explanation
Understand what each sentence is saying
Read the two sentences together, ignoring the blank:
"The transportation sector accounts for nearly one-quarter of global carbon dioxide emissions. ___ many cities are investing heavily in public transit and bike infrastructure to reduce these emissions."
The first sentence gives a problem: transportation causes a large share of emissions. The second sentence shows what cities are doing in response to that problem.
Identify the logical relationship
Ask: How does the second sentence relate to the first?
- Is it giving another example of emissions?
- Is it showing something that happens despite the first sentence?
- Is it disagreeing with the first sentence?
- Or is it showing what results from or is caused by the first sentence?
Here, cities are investing in transit and bikes because transportation emissions are high. That is a cause-and-effect/result relationship.
Match each option to its typical use
Now, match each transition to the type of relationship it usually shows:
- "For example," is used to introduce an example of something just mentioned.
- "Still," is used for a contrast, often meaning "nevertheless".
- "On the contrary," is used to contradict or say the opposite of what was just stated.
- One option (the remaining one) is commonly used to show a result or effect that follows from the previous statement.
Because the second sentence describes a response/result of the problem in the first sentence, choose the transition that expresses a result: "Consequently,".